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This Medicine Cabinet Staple Might Help Beat Prostate Cancer

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Men who’ve been treated for prostate cancer, either with surgery or radiation, could benefit from taking aspirin regularly, according to a new study led by a UT Southwestern researcher. Aspirin, the study indicates, is associated with a lower risk of death from the disease.

Among men in the U.S., prostate cancer is the most common non-skin cancer and the second-leading cancer killer. Researchers looked at almost 6,000 men who had prostate cancer and were treated with surgery or radiotherapy. Those who had also taken aspirin were less likely to die from prostate cancer than those who had not. The risks of cancer recurrence and bone metastasis also were significantly lower. This benefit was most prominent in men with “high-risk” disease.

What it means

“The results from this study suggest that aspirin prevents the growth and spread of tumor cells in prostate cancer, especially in high-risk prostate cancer, for which we do not currently have a very good treatment,” says Kevin Choe, M.D., Ph.D., Assistant Professor of Radiation Oncology and first author of the paper. But he cautions, “We need to better understand the optimal use of aspirin before routinely recommending it to all prostate patients.”